We don't want to sound predatory, but to grab the right job, you've got to be able to swoop in and beat the competition. You can't do that if you're not up on the latest methods for getting your qualifications in front of a prospective employer.

Technology has significantly changed the recruitment process during the past 10 years.. Today, many employers accept electronic copies of your résumé. Depending on the company, you may be asked to submit your electronic résumé in one of the following formats:

• As an e-mail attachment
• In the e-mail body
• As ASCII plain text
• As a scannable résumé

As an E-mail Attachment
This format will require to you to save your résumé in a Microsoft Word or Corel Wordperfect format and attach it to your e-mail. Follow these steps to attach your résumé:

• Open your e-mail program
• Click on attachments (often a paper clip icon)
• Click on browse to find the résumé on your computer's hard drive
• Click on your résumé's file name, then click "OK"
• Your résumé name should appear in your e-mail program
• Enter a subject and compose your e-mail cover letter

Tip: Send the e-mail to yourself so you can see how your cover letter will appear. This gives you another opportunity to check for grammar and spelling errors.

In the E-mail Body
Some employers may request that you send your résumé in the body of your e-mail. This format is easy to do, just follow these few steps:

1. Open your e-mail program
2. Create a new message
3. Enter a subject and your cover letter
4. Open your résumé in MS Word or Corel Wordperfect
5. Highlight all of the text (You can use your mouse or press CTRL+A.)
6. Click "Edit" then "Copy" or press CTRL+C
7. Return to the new message in your e-mail program
8. Click "Edit" then "Paste" or press CTRL+V
9. Your résumé will appear in the body of your e-mail message
10. If your cover letter is also in MS Word or Corel Wordperfect format you can copy it from your hard drive by repeating steps 4 to 8 and select your cover letter file instead of your résumé file.

Send the e-mail to yourself first and double check for grammar, spelling and presentation.

As ASCII Plain Text
ASCII is an international standard that allows computers to exchange documents. Special formatting is lost when converting from MS Word or Corel Wordperfect. Follow these steps to create an ASCII text-only résumé:

• To save your MS Word or Corel Wordperfect résumé as text-only, choose FILE|SAVE AS and then select TEXT ONLY in the SAVE AS TYPE drop-down list
• A dialog box may appear indicating that you will lose all formatting by saving in a text file. Click YES to continue saving your résumé as TEXT ONLY. Open the text-only copy of your résumé in a text editor such as Notepad.
• ASCII does not recognize formatting such as bold, italics, and bullets, so be sure to review your text for errors.
• Your text résumé will appear left-aligned. If you wish to indent, use the spacebar. Do not use tabs.
• Use Word Wrap if your résumé has long lines of text when you view it in Notepad. (Select "Edit" then "Word Wrap")
• Your bullets may now appear as asterisks(*), hyphens(-) or question marks(?). If the bullets appear as question marks you should change them to asterisks, hyphens or plus signs(+).
• Remove your header and footer from page 2 of your résumé, since pages are no longer relevant.
• Adjust spacing where necessary to enhance readability.
• Make sure the most important information is in the top third of your résumé. (In case employers/recruiters print a screen shot of your résumé.)
• Be sure to include keywords in your résumé. ASCII text can be searched by employers for keywords.
• Review your résumé again for unusual characters that may have changed when saving in ASCII format.

Your résumé is now in an electronic format that can be copied and pasted into an e-mail or online form. Follow the same steps to create an ASCII electronic cover letter.

E-mail the résumé to yourself and check to make sure you have removed, or changed, any unusual characters that may have appeared when saving as an ASCII text file.

Scannable Résumés
Scannable résumés are paper résumés that are scanned into a computer system using optical character recognition (OCR) programs. Keep the following tips in mind if you are asked to submit a résumé in a scannable format:

Formatting Tips

• Use a standard serif or sans-serif font such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Courier
• Use a font size of 12 to 14 points
• Use bold or uppercase characters for emphasis
• Use round, solid bullets
• Submit your laser printed résumé on white, letter-sized paper
• Print on one side only
• Do not fold or crease your résumé when mailing. This could cause an entire line of your résumé to scan incorrectly at the crease points.

Content Tips

• Place your name on a separate line at the top of the first page (It can also be the first text on the second page)
• Use a standard address format below your name and place your telephone number and e-mail address on separate lines
• Make sure your "From" and "To" dates are on the same line when listing your work history
• Describe your skills and accomplishments using keyword phrases
• Use keywords throughout your résumé so your résumé will be found in a keyword search
• Use a power verb with nouns because nouns are more distinguishable than verbs (e.g., use "managed training and development" rather than "trained and developed")
• Use a summary of accomplishments that focuses on results rather than duties and responsibilities
• Create a keyword section that contains your keywords separated by commas or periods
  
• Integrate the keywords within the content of your résumé details
  
• Use keywords to define your skills, experience, education, professional affiliations, etc.
  
• Use industry-related keywords relevant to the position for which you are applying
  
• Use common headings such as: Objective, Experience, Skills, Summary, Work History, etc.